Hill climb: A protest case (still) without clarification 🎥
DISQUALIFICATION - AND THEN? The stewards have disqualified Patrik Zajelsnik, who finished second in the Osnabrück hill climb. Protest leader Marcel Steiner moves up to second place, not undeservedly, and is thus the new sports car winner. The protest filed by Marcel Steiner against Patrik Zajelsnik in the interest of some international competitors does not bring any clarification for the time being. The man from Freiburg, who starts under a Slovenian license (in [...]
The protest filed by Marcel Steiner against Patrik Zajelsnik on behalf of some international competitors does not bring any clarification for the time being. The athlete from Freiburg (in Breisgau), who starts under a Slovenian license, refused to sign with which he would have confirmed that he had taken note of the protest. After almost endless discussions with the sports commissioners, they took him out of the classification late on Sunday evening.
What is certain is that Marcel Steiner moves up to second place behind day winner Christian Merli as a result. Zajelsnik's exclusion also means that the Swiss defending champion with his unique LobArt Mugen wins the sports car classification ahead of renowned people like Sébastien Petit and Vaclav Janik (both Norma).
The case is moved on
It remains to be seen what punishment the German-Slovenian will face. The ball is now in the court of the DMSB (Deutscher Motor Sport Bund), which has long since stopped issuing him a license because of other incidents. For this reason, the team only competes in Germany in hill climbs with a higher FIA predicate, in Slovenia or in the rest of the world.
In all probability, the DMSB will forward the case to the FIA. Legally, the presumption of innocence applies until then. However, his behavior in Osnabrück certainly does not speak for him and can rather be interpreted as an admission of guilt. Anyone with a clean record would have nothing to hide in such a case.
Faster than the record holder
The competition suspects that the displacement is too large. Mugen has engines with more than three liters of displacement and thus more torque. Based on top speed measurements at various events, this suspicion is obvious. In Osnabrück, the radar at the end of the start straight always showed between 217.28 and 218.48 km/h for Zajelsnik, and between 209.02 and 211.12 km/h for Merli.
The following short video of Zajelsnik's ride to the stage win at the La Broque-Schirmeck (F) hill climb last June, compiled by PrivatKnipser, is an aural and visual feast:
Dissatisfied Marcel Steiner
For Marcel Steiner, the whole thing leaves a stale aftertaste. Even if he gets the entire protest fee back and he is now second overall, he can't be happy about it.
Marcel Steiner: "Whether I'm second or third isn't that important. I'd rather have driven it out on the track. Apparently, no one is allowed to see this engine. I hope that wasn't just a warning shot across the bow. Let's see what comes of it."
